Highway Driving

[Doug Axelrod]

I've had this problem (at least I think it's the same), particularly when there's wind and cold. Silly me, trying to emulate Daily Driver Copple. Anyway, on those cold days a thick wool cap pulled over the ears helps. On long drives those ear plugs that are of dense foam and get rolled into a long cylinder before putting into the ear canal where they re-expand and block most sound work quite well. They don't block all sound, so it's pretty safe, though the engine sound really hits you when you take them out at the end of a drive. The ear plugs are cheap at drugstores (pharmacies).

[petek]

Denny,
Actually I don't expect it to be as comfortable. And no, I'm not as young as I was back when I drove an MGA

On the other hand, I'm quite a bit older, more experienced, and unafraid of discussing something that could easily brand me as wimp. "Gosh, here he is, build himself a car that he's uncomfortable driving at speed, what a wimp!"

But, as many have demonstrated here, the problem is not uncommon and folks have come up with innovative methods of solution. Thank you everyone for sharing!

As for airplanes... I've often encountered inner ear discomfort but never pain. Heck, I've suffered from vertigo just from taking off (seldom, but it has happened). Come to think of it, maybe that's what's going on with the wind buffetting.

I've got a lot more experiementing to do ... ear plugs, wind deflectors ... and gaining more experience with my Cobra at speed! I wonder what sort of strange looks I'd get if I drove around with my helmet on

[rdorman]

You could be the trendsetter on this one. If you have a roll bar you should have a helmet on! Even a padded rollbar is not enough. It is amazing how much the body moves around on impact. In the head versus roll bar battle, the roll bar always wins! Do I drive around with a helmet on, heck no. Don't have a roll bar either

Just me and my four wheel motorcycle. We have to remember these where designed when seat belts where often optional equipement and a child protection seat was a baby blanket wrapped around junior as he lay on the front seat, a bench one at that. The inherent danger of these cars is part of the appeal is it not? Doesn't mean we couldn't make one safe, but what would it look like

Sorry Pete, off on a tangent!

No peice of safety equipement is better than the one between the ears.

Rick

[petek]

"No piece of safety equipement is better than the one between the ears."

TRUTH!

My youngest daughter (16) started driving a few months ago. She now fully understands why I suggest that she assume that everyone else on the road is an idiot. A day hasn't gone by that she hasn't told me a story or two of the idiots on the road.

Of course I encourage her to continue to notice the idiots and tell me about them ... if she's watchin' she's thinkin'!

I think I will try driving at speed with the helmet on, easy experiment and it ought to be a hoot

[rdorman]

That is the EXACT same thing I tell my daughter. You have to assume the other person will do the wrong thing. Mid-Ohio race car school has an excellent school that teaches teens defensive driving, car control, etc. The discount on the insurance alone will cover the cost of the school over time. I had to learn all that stuff the hard way. Not my kids. You should look for one in your area as well. Money well spent IMO.

Me, I am doing SOLOII all weekend this weekend. Gets some of the urge to be 'bad' out of the system. Plus it has been really educational for me to see how the car behaves at, and of course over, the limit. Every Cobra owner should try it. I usually will hit 70 on the course so it is pretty good practice!

Rick

[petek]

There is a Solo II here in KC this weekend (if I remember correctly) ... I've got a long list of honey-do's for the weekend, but I'm hoping I can cut out and join the fun! I've even suggested to my youngest daughter that she should take the Neon R/T and have a blast through ... no, I mean "between", the cones!

[RallySnake]

We tried helmets on a Starlite Rally to Las Vegas one November. The temperatures were in the teens. Surprisingly, even with the inch of insulation, the helmets were not that warm. Ski caps are better and lighter.

I took my older son to an SCCA autocross at El Toro after he got his car (Nissan Sentra). He was amazed how far you could push the car and how difficult it was to drive at the limit.

In California we don't have idiots, we have crazy people! I'm always telling him to lookout for crazy people and he tells me about the stuff he sees. He's getting a little tired of my favorite joke though. You know, " If you see a car in California with the turn signal on, It means that it was on when they bought the car"!

Paul

[petek]

Wow, it's the same here in KC. There are two types: the ones that bought the car with working signals (left on the day they purchased the car) and the ones who decided to save money by purchasing a car without turn signals.

It's a darn good thing that we don't require drivers to flick a switch manually to turn on the brake lights when they press on the brake pedal!

[Fred Douglass]

...I started ocean-racing in 1960 (at age 15) with guys my father's age (b. c 1899-1905). If you haven't done it, heavy-air ocean-racing usually grits ya right up like nothing else. Where else can you get hernias and salt-boils at the same time?
I was literally boat-broken by the Olympian gods of big-boat racing. To complain about anything was NOT an option. So, years hence, race-skippering my own boat--whenever the inevitable tissue-tears and bloody-bits occured, I simply enjoin the yuppies-in-question with a "Git tough!"
Learn to love wind-whip and the collars of your shirt nearly blinding you! Savor bugs off the cranium! Actually, I've only got 800 Cobra piloting miles on my butt---butt ALL offshore sailors are masochists. If you can't find a crotch-rocket, beg a ride on a large sailboat being used "in anger". Masochism 101!

[RallySnake]

Wow Fred, you gave me goosebumps!

I used to love ocean sailing. Man what a workout! I learned at a sailing school in the port of Salcombe in Devonshire, England. Thanks for the memories!

Paul

[petek]

I've discovered that 75 degree air temperature (rather than the much cooler 45 - 55 degree weather that I've been traveling in) makes all sorts of difference. Took a different route home, better quality road, sustained speeds of 70+ w/o any discomfort. Now all I need is a pair of Panoptx glasses to keep my eyes from going dry.

Took the Cobra out this evening for a dinner at the local BBQ and Steak place; tiny hole-in-the-wall spot. Ok food, good for a quick dinner. Pulled around the building looking for a safe place to park. One of the cooks heard the car, yelled out to the other cooks "it's a friggin' Shelby". Ended up with six guys giving my wife and I (ok, the car) a thumbs up.

An hour later and with our stomachs filled with rib eye, we slowly pulled out of the parking lot. My wife leaned over and said the group of cooks were all back outside and apparently suggesting we light the tires up.

As we pulled onto the road (no other cars in sight), my wife said, "go for it". Not being one to ignore the demands of my wife ...

... next comment from my wife, "wow, smell that tire smoke."

D@mn these things are fun!

[Hal Copple]

I have driven a lot in all sorts of weather. I too have found that my ears get a bit of a painful "pop" from some sort of air pressure phenomenon, so on trips longer than several hours, i put in the foam ear plugs, i get them at a shooter's store. I too have notices when i take them out, that i am amazed at how loud my car is.

I also find out that my eyes dry out after awhile, so i wear nice curved sunglasses, Oakely, very dark, and very cover a lot, and do wonders for keeping my eyes moist. Of course, if i am around town, and trying to be cool, i wear my Rayban aviators.

On many trips, i wear bubble goggles, i have them in smoke and clear, and wear the clear ones at ngiht, or clear Gargoyles, it is a delight to wear goggles, they keep my eyes nice and comfy.

On really long trips, whe wind whipping my thinning hair gives me some sort of scalp pain, so like the motorcyle guys, i put on a tie down skull cap thing i got at a biker shop.

I can get chilled at ambiant temps of 60 degrees or less, and when it gets down into the 40's, i put on some long underewear, too.

I have an assortment of caps and gloves, too. In about two weeks, i plan on a little 500+ mile run up to Ohio and back the next day.

My son and I were comparing driving experiences in my SPF and his Boxster, which he got friday. Totally different. Sort of like the difference between a BMW bike, and a Ducati.

We have a beautiful weekend now, after all the east coast rain the past few days.

My wife just loves here new X Series Jag, too, it is really quite a car, with the AWD in the rain and the sports suspension, it is a superb road car. She loves the power, she smoked an aggressive guy in his Chrysler 300 car a few days ago. She leaves the tranny in Sports Mode, she loves the performance of her new Jag.

all the best, and God Bless our troops.

[Alan Vanhollebeke]

Pete,, when I used to make a trip to KC & back to Topeka at least once a month in my cobra. (usually for the club meetings)

I learned real quick that earplugs are a good thing. After cruising down I70 for an hour without them, I felt like I'd been at a Led-Zeppelin concert or something!

Anyways, that's my vote for cheap earplugs. Also,my daughter used to ride with me alot & I had her wear a pair of shooter's earmuffs. After I while I would wear them on the highway too, since they blocked the wind out of my ears. lowered the noise, AND helped keep my hat from flying off.

Oh, and yes I have also worn my helmey when driving in the cold.
Last time was St. Patricks day of 2002. I left Topeka for KC at 6am to make it to the parade on time. When I left town it was only 27 degrees out! After about 5 miles I stopped & got my helmet out of the trunk , because my ears were going numb.

That may not be such a big deal,,,,but if the space "between" my ears goes numb too,,,then I'm in trouble.